Development hinges on all our efforts Whenever politicians of whatever stripe talk about economic development in this area, they apparently feel compelled to mention O’Hare International Airport as the economic engine of northern Illinois. That it is, certainly, with some 33,000-plus working there each day, hundreds of thousands of people passing through if not departing for or arriving at the nation’s second busiest airport and countless business transactions ongoing at O’Hare’s restaurants, shops, ticket counters, bookstores and so on. All by itself, O’Hare really is an economic development official’s wildest dream, with Christmas and his birthday wrapped up a basketful of goodies every day. And that’s great, because O’Hare is important and vital to all the best interests of this area. But, there’s more, and it is good news, because what’s happening throughout our area now in economic development is that more people and more organizations and more businesses than ever before are working together to foster progress and development. That’s more or less a new notion in this area over the last decade or so, this “working together” stuff. There was a time in the not so distant past when a Chicago mayor would rather be caught dead than caught in the suburbs, especially the non-Cook County ones. In recent years, not only has the current Mayor Daley talked of regional solutions to regional issues but he also has actually worked with suburban mayors and officials on solutions rather than ham-handedly and unilaterally demanded that the city’s way be the only way. It helps, no doubt, that economic development has grown as a field into which more young professionals are moving. It helps that almost every municipality, large or small, has someone at least charged with overseeing development efforts if not in fact a fully-staffed city department whose sole role is to attract new businesses and retain current ones. It helps that area chambers of commerce, if not directly involved in ED with a professional on staff, have committees devoted to the same and, moreover, are making their members aware of the important role that businesses play in bringing in new business. It helps that there are now regional economic development organizations that have grown out of involvement by the public and private sectors. In Choose DuPage and in the Will County Economic Development Commission the area has two such groups while Kane County boasts superlative ED pros in Phil Bus and Chris Aiston. Former Elgin ED chief Chris Mannheim is a strong voice for development in growing McHenry County. Chicago and Cook County groups are not standing idly by, either, with CMAP (Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning) and the MPC (Metropolitan Planning Council) offering analyses of current issues as well as long-range planning. Thirty or 40 years may seem a long way out, but not for planners, who think in increments of decades rather than years. In this issue, we have stories on development efforts in communities as disparate as Maywood, Lisle and St. Charles as well as a front page piece on some struggles over development in Orland Park. We have, over the past few years, covered economic development issues, trends and happenings in Elmhurst, Des Plaines, Forest Park, Palatine, Glen Ellyn, Wheaton, Clarendon Hills, Hoffman Estates and Schaumburg. We expect to continue coverage of such issues in 2009 and beyond for one simple reason: Economic development is the core issue around which so many other important business issues revolve and from which so many emanate. Issues like affordable housing, good schools, traffic and transportation, jobs, infrastructure, health care, the environment, energy and utilities and other quality of life issues are part and parcel of economic development. That business owners and executive stay informed and involved and supportive of such progressive efforts is vital as the Chicago region aspires to be a world-renowned one in the 21st century. Contact editor Don Kopriva at dkopriva@thebusinessledger.com or at 630-428-8788.

Posted on Monday, August 11, 2008 (Archive on Monday, August 18, 2008) Posted by jstoltz  Contributed by jstoltz

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